From .
and , the Democrats vying for a chance to face Gov. Greg Abbott in November, are preparing for , to be held Friday in Austin. It won鈥檛 be broadcast, but will be livestreamed by in Austin. And the Republican incumbent isn鈥檛 waiting around to see who will win the May 22 runoff. Abbott has released a campaign ad calling Valdez 鈥渢oo liberal for Texas.鈥�
, a political science professor at the University of Houston, says Abbott would prefer to run against Valdez.
鈥淗e鈥檚 definitely turning the volume up to 11,鈥� Rottinghaus says. 鈥淗e had signaled that he wanted to run against Valdez because, I think, the matchup for him is much better than it is for White.鈥�
Rottinghaus says Abbott鈥檚 efforts could play into White鈥檚 hands, though, since one of the centrist Democrat鈥檚 arguments to voters is that he, not Valdez, can beat Abbott.
The race between Valdez and White has changed considerably since she came in first on primary day in March.
鈥淭here鈥檚 been some concern that Valdez鈥檚 ability to handle tough questions isn鈥檛 all there 鈥� basic questions about her time as sheriff, and how she interacted with the federal government with respect to immigration issues,鈥� Rottinghaus says.
In Friday鈥檚 debate, Valdez needs to articulate her progressive stance on immigration and how she dealt with the federal government during her time as Dallas County Sheriff.
White, who is the son of former Governor Mark White, is a Houston businessman, who鈥檚 positioning himself as a political outsider.
鈥淗e needs to press the case that he鈥檚 one of the only candidates that鈥檚 presented a series of plans, and these plans have been panned to some degree because the funding has been a little unusual,鈥� Rottinghaus says.
Written by Shelly Brisbin.
Copyright 2020 KUT 90.5. To see more, visit . 9(MDAxODQzOTgwMDEyMTcyNjI4MTAxYWQyMw004))
